Everybody might be talking about Captain America: Civil War at the moment, but we’re already looking forward to the next big Marvel ensemble- Avengers: Infinity War! And when we say “ensemble,” we mean it. While not much has been revealed about the two-part pinnacle of Marvel Phase 3, the Russo brothers have said that we will be seeing 67 named characters in Infinity War. It’s a staggering number, and could potentially include every superhero we have met so far in the MCU (and then some).
With so many, it can be hard to keep up, so we’ve put together a quick guide to who we might be seeing (and how they could fit in). Here are 13 Marvel Characters That Could Appear In Avengers: Infinity War.
Warning! Spoilers ahead for existing films in the MCU, rumors from upcoming films, and references to Civil War and Infinity Gauntlet comic events.
13. The Defenders
By the time the Infinity War movies hit our screens, we will already have a full roster of Defenders with their own Netflix series (if all goes according to plan). Daredevil and Jessica Jones have each already had a successful first season, and Luke Cage is set for release later this year. By 2018, Iron Fist should have joined the streaming service, with an ensemble Defenders series also on the slate.
In the Infinity Gauntlet comics, Daredevil doesn’t fare too well, but he and the Defenders also don’t play a vital role. They have been rumored to be appearing in the movies, but if they do, it will probably be as small cameos on street level, rather than fighting front and center.
12. Captain Marvel
Marvel is finally giving us a female-fronted superhero movie in 2018 with Captain Marvel, and there is no doubt that she will appear in Infinity War Part II, as well as probably cameos in earlier films as well. James Gunn has previously denied that she will be making an appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy 2, but as such a major new character, it would be surprising if she doesn’t appear somewhere before the Infinity War begins.
Captain Marvel may not be vital to the Infinity Gauntlet storyline, but as a character with connections to the sci-fi/alien/intergalactic side of the MCU, she will undoubtedly have a part to play.
11. S.H.I.E.L.D Agents and Inhumans
Although S.H.I.E.L.D is nowhere near the power that it used to be (since the revelation in Captain America: The Winter Soldier that HYDRA had infiltrated the organization at every level), we are sure to see Coulson (Clark Gregg) and his agents somewhere in Infinity War. Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson), Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) and Bobbi Morse (Adrianne Palicki) have been specifically rumored to appear on the big screen, with Mockingbird possibly joining the Avengers. Nick Fury will likely have to deal with some backlash over his decision to hand over one of the stones to the Asgardians, and S.H.I.E.L.D (Fitz and Simmons, at least) will potentially be attempting to create the kind of technology that can contain the stones safely.
The other characters who may be making it into Infinity War from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D are Quake (Chloe Bennet) and the Inhumans. An Inhumans stand-alone movie is planned for release between the two Infinity War movies, suggesting that Infinity War will be setting up the Inhumans as a major new team for the MCU. If this is the case, we will undoubtedly see some of the Inhumans from the TV series involved in the films.
10. Original Avengers
We may not be seeing as much of the original Avengers line-up as expected, but there will definitely be a few of Marvel’s biggest names ready to take on Thanos.
Robert Downey Jr has been confirmed for Infinity War, but we don’t know how big a role he will play, especially as he has said that an Iron Man 4 is not on the cards. Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) has been confirmed to appear, and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is presumably also going to be playing a part. Captain America (Chris Evans), however, may not be appearing in Infinity War, as rumors abound that he won’t be making it out of Captain America: Civil War alive. Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) has also been rumored as a potential casualty of Civil War. Thor is a final question mark, as Chris Hemsworth is also rumored to be hanging up his hammer at the end of Thor: Ragnarok (whether dead or imprisoned, we do not know). However, if this does happen, we may have a new face taking on the title of Thor for Infinity War (hint: it’s the same as the latest Thor from the comics).
9. New Avengers
At the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron we got a glimpse at a new Avengers team being trained by Black Widow, including Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), Vision (Paul Bettany), Falcon (Anthony Mackie) and War Machine (Don Cheadle). This team will no doubt go through some more changes in Captain America: Civil War before appearing in Infinity War, but we are almost guaranteed to see all of these characters in the movies, seeing as the films are titled AVENGERS: Infinity War. Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) is also rumored to be a potential Avengers member for Infinity War (and beyond), alongside Wasp (Evangaline Lilly). If they join the team, they will obviously be front-and-center for the Infinity War.
There is one final rumor for our new Avengers team: that we could see the return of Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Many fans were sad to see such an iconic character killed off in his first outing (Avengers: Age of Ultron), although some theorized that Marvel didn’t want to compete directly with Fox’s Quicksilver in the X-Men franchise. However, some rumors suggest that he will be brought back from the dead in time to go up against Thanos.
8. The Collector
The Collector (Benicio Del Toro) played a major part in Guardians of the Galaxy, when it was revealed that not only is he fully aware of what the Infinity Stones are, he is actively trying to acquire them. He came close to buying the Power Stone (aka the Orb) from Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) and the Guardians, but was prevented by his slave Carina, who attempted to hold it and was incinerated, along with much of his vault.
He was already in possession of the Reality Stone (aka the Aether), which was given to him for storage by the Asgardians, who didn’t want to keep both the Reality Stone and the Space Stone in the same place. We can assume that the Collector still has the Reality Stone, and that Thanos will attempt to take it, and the knowledge of where some of the other Stones are, from him in the run up to Infinity War.
7. Loki
We know that Loki (Tom Hiddleston) will return for Thor: Ragnarok, and he may well be appearing in Infinity Wars, too. Loki has previously been connected to two Infinity Stones, the Space Stone (aka the Tesseract) and the Mind Stone (which was in his staff). Loki has also worked for Thanos in the past, and although his plan failed, he may well reappear as an ally to Thanos in the future.
Currently, Loki is disguised as Odin and ruling Asgard, where he has access to the Space Stone. There is a solid chance that this will be how Thanos recovers the stone for his gauntlet. Obviously, the events of Thor: Ragnarok will have a major impact on Loki and the rest of the Asgardians, but they will still presumably appear for Infinity War in some shape or form.
6. Vision
Vision (Paul Bettany) may not have been officially confirmed, but he is almost guaranteed to be making an appearance for Infinity War because he is in possession of an Infinity Stone. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, we saw Vision brought to life with the Mind Stone, which he still has. Thor was the one who decided that he was worthy of holding onto the Stone, after Mjolnir deemed Vision to be “worthy”.
We don’t know exactly how this will tie in to the Infinity War, but Thanos obviously needs to get that stone back from Vision at some point, which will be a major part of the build up to the final battle. We also don’t know whether Vision will survive without the Mind Stone. The general assumption is that he will exist perfectly well without it, but Marvel has been known to throw us some curve balls – and there is little doubt that we will not end Infinity War with the full 67 characters that began it.
5. The Guardians of the Galaxy
With Thanos as the big bad of the Infinity War movies, the Guardians of the Galaxy are guaranteed to have a decent-sized role to play in the films. Both Nebula (Karen Gillan) and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) are the adopted daughters of Thanos, and although Gamora has turned against him, Nebula will potentially still be on his side.
The Guardians have also come across one Infinity Stone already: the Power Stone (aka The Orb), which Thanos’ minion Ronan (Lee Pace) failed to retrieve, and which is now in the hands of Nova Prime Irani Rael (Glenn Close) on Xandar. We may even see a second Infinity Stone come into play in Guardians of the Galaxy 2, although the sequel may not link directly to Infinity War.
4. Doctor Strange
Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) will be making his big-screen debut at the end of this year, with an origin story movie about the brilliant Doctor who trains in the magical arts after an accident leaves him without the ability to perform surgery any more. We don’t know much about the plot of the film, but there is some speculation that Doctor Strange could introduce one of the two remaining Infinity Stones (the Soul Stone and the Time Stone).
Kevin Feige has previously mentioned that Doctor Strange will have a mystic amulet (the Eye of Agamotto) that gives him some control over time – there is a very good chance that this is the Time Stone. If that is the case, Doctor Strange will have a big role to play in the upcoming Infinity War.
3. Adam Warlock
Adam Warlock, the artificially created “perfect human” who lashes out against his creators and goes rogue, is a major character in the Infinity Gauntlet comics, and it’s a fairly safe bet to say that he will be appearing in Infinity War.
As well as leading the charge against Thanos in the Infinity Gauntlet series, Warlock has had multiple run-ins with Thanos and the Stones in the comics. He is connected to the Soul Gem (and was reborn through it), and we can assume that Warlock will make an appearance alongside the Soul Stone. Warlock has also been teased already in the MCU, as we saw his yellow cocoon in the Collector’s vault, which was split open in the end credits.
2. Death
You probably didn’t realize, but Infinity War will have a love story at its core. Thanos isn’t just collecting Infinity Stones to destroy the universe for fun – he’s doing it because he’s in love with Death. One of the most powerful beings in the Marvel-verse, Death inspires Thanos to attempt to destroy half of the universe in order to balance life and death for her. She is a key figure in the Infinity Gauntlet storyline, and it would be a shocking move by Marvel to exclude her.
Many fans even thought that she was the woman revealed in the trailer for Avengers: Age of Ultron (seen above), although the scene was eventually cut from the film.
1. Thanos
We’ve already had our first glimpse of the purple-skinned villain, and Thanos has been confirmed as the big bad for Infinity War. Josh Brolin will be reprising the role, and although he hasn’t been announced to appear in any of the MCU films between now and then, it’s highly probable that he will pop up in a post credit scene or in Guardians of the Galaxy 2. From the post-credits scene attached to Avengers: Age of Ultron, we know that Thanos has got his hand on the Infinity Gauntlet (a powerful metal glove that is built to hold the Infinity Stones so that they can be used together as the ultimate weapon), and that he’s after the Infinity Stones.
In Infinity War, he will be (presumably) bringing these stones together in an attempt to destroy the universe and impress Death, and the heroes of the MCU will be out to stop him. As the big bad of the Infinity War, he’ll be one of the most important characters in the films.
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Any other characters you pretty sure will show up in Avengers: Infinity War? Let us know what you think in the comments!
